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Gingrich was controversial and confrontational, spoiling publicly for a fight with the more charismatic Clinton. House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky are low-key, and Republicans say they are better at strategy and tactics than Gingrich was.

All along, the message has been similar to what House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said Tuesday: “Let me be clear, a government shutdown is not an acceptable outcome … We should be able to come together and find areas to cut spending and save money to keep the government functioning and take the first steps toward getting our fiscal house in order.”

Republicans say it’s Democrats who can’t stop saying the “S” word and that it will cost them politically.

“Sen. Schumer, in particular, is visibly salivating for this to happen,” the GOP aide said.

Some Democrats believe the politics of a shutdown are just what the party needs to portray itself as the party of reason and moderation. They look to the model of Clinton and Gingrich and see a similar dynamic — a tea party-driven House Republican conference driving Boehner to shut down the federal government.

As former Rep. Robert Walker (R-Pa.), a top ally of then Speaker Newt Gingrich, notes in an upcoming op-ed for the Ripon Society, Republicans “lost the public relations battle with the White House” during 1995. Democrats could exploit potential Republican divisions between veterans wary of a repeat of 1995 and the 87-member class of activists who want to go much further than their leaders in pushing spending cuts.

“I’m surprised with the breathtaking speed in which the extremes of the Republican Party took over their caucus,” Israel added. “Moderate Republicans are ashen faced at this. Those few that are left.”

Indeed, 10 days before the government runs out of money, Democrats have already settled on their message: Republicans are radical, reckless and not ready for prime time

But Paxon said Democrats are putting themselves in a precarious place if they expect the current budget battle to play out like the fight between Clinton and Gingrich.

“The public’s in a different place, and the Republicans in Congress are in a different place,” he said.

" "Shutdown: Does GOP have the edge this time?" - the liberal/progressive POLITICO

Answer: well that depends who our dishonest liberal/progressive MSM wolfpack press is for or against.. In the 1990's our Free Left-wing press were for the Democrats...........surprise surprise...................lol Don't see that changing at all now in 2011....

Is our liberal/progressive MSM wolfpack press usually for the GOP or for the Democrats?

That's why they call it the "power of the press" folks..

The same dishonest MSM wolfpack that hasn't done one story on the mob-like protests going on in Wisconsin............ Did the GOP leave Washington DC when Nancy Pelosi was RAMMING OBAMACARE down our throats?...................NO

Dishonest MSM wolfpack how about coming clean and getting out of bed with the Democrat Party and dishonest Public Unions you need to get out of bed with the Democrat Party too......

No more cozy corrupt relationships between the Press and Unions and their Party, the Democrats can be toleranted.........

Times have changed. President Barack Obama is no Bill Clinton, Speaker John Boehner is no Newt Gingrich. The new guys ran on slashing spending and they’re showing they meant it. Meanwhile, Washington Democrats wouldn’t cut a penny in their spending proposal, even though austerity is the buzzword in state capitals and county seats around the country.

It all adds up to this: Republicans have less to fear from a government shutdown now than they did when they endured the blame 15 years ago

All true PLUS we are not in a good economic period like we were entering in 1995.......The economy is horrible and most people see the federal government as the reckless spender causing the economic uncertainty as the democrat threaten to raise taxes to continue their increased spending.

Obama has already said we have to be serious about the debt......so we just have to call his bluff.....Bill Clinton had his incresed taxes and a healthy economy with good revenues, so he could just wait and let the GOP do their stuff without committing to anything.

Obama already knows he will have to compromise to keep the government from shutting down.....its just a question to how much is he is willing to cut.....The GOP has to figure that out.......That is the only problem I see here politically.

“I don’t think that the public is going to react the way he assumes they will,” he said. “His assumption is that he can just waltz through this, not offer anything substantive and people are going to direct their ire at Republicans.”

Obama's operating mode is to waltz through, not take an active leadership role and go campaigning all over the US. As much as his wife's mode is to go on ritzy vacations. Americans are fed up with Obama spending OUR money while offering fruitcake solutions to HIS spending problem adding 1.6 Trillion to the deficit in one year. We didn't ask for that. As much as we didn't ask for an escalation in Afghanistan either, but he spent 800 Billion on the military anyway. Wasn't he an anti war candidate?

Then the middle east errupts, and oil is hiking in price as well as gas. Obama just doesn't get it.

Reid and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) are mirroring Boehner, having insisted that a short-term spending bill keep the government funded at not a dime less than the current level. Theirs, too, is an ultimatum: Sign off on the status quo or risk being blamed for a shutdown.

In 1995, there was no FOX News to tell the other side of the story.

In 2011, the mood in the country is markedly different than 1995. Instead of Bill Clinton, we have Baracky Obangi Obungler Obama who hasn't a clue...about anything.

Chucky and Harry are whistling past the graveyard if they're thinking of trying to fool the American people this time around.

All true PLUS we are not in a good economic period like we were entering in 1995.......The economy is horrible and most people see the federal government as the reckless spender causing the economic uncertainty as the democrat threaten to raise taxes to continue their increased spending.

I could not agree more with you. Our economy is busting at the seams and rivets here in ND. But we are just 1 state. Maybe if some of these states that are broke would follow our states model of business and also have there own state owned bank they would do alot better.

Chances are they would have a balance budget and a big surplus of cash like our state does. Even during the worse of the recession, our state pretty sailed right through it. None of our banks got in to the loony mental midget game of loans on housing like so many banks did in alot of the belly up states.

the dem position here is a joke. Obama had his deficit comission and he is on record saying we need to get serious abiout the deficit and debt and yet harry reid offers a cr with no cuts and we get no leadership from Obama on the issue. It is obvious who is really hoping for a shutdown. The dems are desparate in their need to shift the political sands but I think this ploy will backfire and the the gop can go into elections 2012 and rightly point out how the dems were willing to play games that led to a govt shutdown because they were unwilling to look at a the sixty billion in cuts which is just a tiny % if the budget deficit. Every year we pile more debt on future generations of Americans. The generational theft has to stop......

right now I dont give a damn who makes the big cuts..just somebody do it and stop the talking and bickering! Each party is worrying about the other party,when the people just voted and told both parties what they want ,just listen! Hello is anyone there?I voted for Obama but have become disillusioned with his rhetoric and his actions.It appears the repubs want to take the chance of the media trying to bury them for the bigger cuts,but remember this is what the elections dictated! For once do what the American people want..cut spending big time and do it now!

right now I dont give a damn who makes the big cuts..just somebody do it and stop the talking and bickering! Each party is worrying about the other party,when the people just voted and told both parties what they want ,just listen! Hello is anyone there?I voted for Obama but have become disillusioned with his rhetoric and his actions.It appears the repubs want to take the chance of the media trying to bury them for the bigger cuts,but remember this is what the elections dictated! For once do what the American people want..cut spending big time and do it now!

I could not agree more with you! You i hate to admit it, but here in ND, across the state if you walk in to any small town diner folks are sitting around laughing at wht they see on TV and the rest of the states. I hate to say that. Wife and i had lunch again yesterday at our 1 and only diner here in town and 1 of the fellas i know sitting with a big table of other farmers said this.

When the nation became morally and ethically bankrupt, the rest was soon to follow. More truth in that statement than most folks want to admit.

“The more the American people realize that the Republicans are playing a game with the budget, the more fed up they’re going to be,” said Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel (N.Y.).

The greedy public worker pigs pay the least amount and are making more money and a steady paycheck than the rest of America who is jobless, homeless and starving in the streets.

The greedy public worker pigs are paid for and supported by struggling American families who are just trying to put food on the table.

Off with their heads! The greedy public worker pigs have fed at the trough of public money long enough! They have long used up and defecated upon any last remaining good will of the public who doesn’t get those cushy little government positions.

Fire all of the greedy public worker pigs and let others have their jobs.

A new batch of House Republicans getting hammered for shutting down the government: That’s so 1995.

Times have changed. President Barack Obama is no Bill Clinton, Speaker John Boehner is no Newt Gingrich. The new guys ran on slashing spending and they’re showing they meant it. Meanwhile, Washington Democrats wouldn’t cut a penny in their spending proposal, even though austerity is the buzzword in state capitals and county seats around the country.

It all adds up to this: Republicans have less to fear from a government shutdown now than they did when they endured the blame 15 years ago — at least that’s the thinking in some GOP circles.

I agree.

People are fed up with government red ink. People who work for a living have been forced to do with less the last couple years. We've lost jobs, homes, businesses, taken paycuts, and seen our taxes go up. And the government, these fat lazy bereaucrats and union slobs refuse to deal with less.

Most of generation Obama doesn't get this because they're still living off the fat of their parents and think bashing Sarah Palin on the internet for 8 hours a day is a job. And when they get their azzes pounded in the next election and Jimmy Carter Redux goes down in flames they'll just keep calling the majority of Americans stupid.

In the 1990's it was "it's the economy stupid", now "it's the spending stupid".

If you are trying to cut social security and medicare ...GOP voters who are older and whiter will be furious.

If say you cut defense and pentagon spending than Democrats will be cut.

Read the small print..

What to cut is nore important ! Everybody may want to cut.

I agree with you some what. I also think it depends on what age group 1 is talking to and were in the US you are standing when you talk cuts. Here in ND there is a big push on to rid ourselves of all farm subs and i for one am all far it. You can not go to 1 Ag conference in this state without this being 1 of the big long hourly talks and with charts, graphs etc. This is really taking hold out here.

And i am glad to see it and am putting my money and muscle behind it and i know alot of other big family owned farms doing the same thing. As far as Cutting SS, i say they can stop mine right now and give me what i paid in, or keep it but dont take another dollar. I can manage my own money better.

In fact id leave it up to Washington. Keep all mine or give me what i paid in but dont take another dollar.

The Democrats have misread the will of the people for the last two years, and there is little to convince me they won't continue to get the message that was sent in 2010... all the way into 2012. They have woken a conservative giant that is bigger than their liberal counterpart.

Here's the narrative... Republicans are trying to put a band aid on the failure of a Democrat house and Senate that failed to pass a budget for an entire year. And even a band aid is too much for the Democrats, who want to continue the status quo the country clearly told them was unexceptable. To support the narrative, the voters will watch public unions, aided by the DNC, fighting tooth and nail to continue the status quo... Cadillac benefits on the backs of the tax payer.

Democrats have become the party of no, or in the case of Wisconsin, and now possibly Indiana, the party of no show. Only rather than just saying no to unpopular policies, they are saying no to a majority of American voters.

Indeed, this is not 1995-96, when unemployment was in the mid 5% range, when states weren't struggling to pay their bills, when a massive deficit wasn't looming over our ability to climb out of the aftermath of a deep recession, and we didn't have a Government that had just squandered two years doing nearly nothing to correct the problem.